MEEKER | Ever find yourself stranded on the highway late at night and more than one person stops to lend a hand? Stuck without a ride to go to an appointment in the neighboring community? Suddenly someone remembers that they just happened to be going your way. These are what so many people label as random acts of kindness today. The old random acts of kindness were not random at all. Giving someone their word while offering a handshake sealed many a business deal. Leaving a cabin stocked with a full larder unlocked fulfilled the hospitality credo set in place by the settlers.
One of the Herald Times’ most recent obituaries cited how important this moral obligation was with a reference to the individual who “lived by the hospitality code of the west. No one was turned away or left their home without a good cup of coffee, a joke or two and more times than not, with a full belly. “I find this tradition is as alive and well as it was since Meeker’s early days. It looks a little different but it is definitely still here.”
Displaying hospitality in different ways than so long ago, we seemed to have adapted. There are so many among us who believe that this no longer holds true, but I disagree. Now that more people can travel once again. I expect that we will see an increase in visitors of our high county, especially as we move forward with all of the efforts to promote our area for cultural tourism, the more kudos this community is bound to receive. In the past few years, numerous letters to the editor have appeared from both tourists and residents alike. I have spoken to some members of the Meeker Chamber of Commerce, as well as a few local business owners and they say are still receiving more positive comments than negative ones. That doesn’t mean it will stay this way.
The proverbial welcome mat needs to put in so many front doors right now. The entrances of local businesses are doing just that, while it seems that many residents are reluctant to go back to their traditional form of hospitality. Where is that “ cup of coffee, a joke or two, and a full belly these days?
By DOLLY VISCARDI – Special to the Herald Times
